Besides, anyone that knows me will also know that despite the fact that I don't believe in organized religion of any kind, I am in fact extrememly spiritual, so to get out of sorts over that statement is to completely misinterpret its meaning, which people do every second of every day. God IS a funny bastard, and the joke is on all of us, but today I mean that in every good way possible.
I've already mentioned in my post "A Deeply Personal Note..." (which many of you loved) that everyone of us must be able to express ourselves and feel like we matter to the world around us in order to feel well adjusted and good about who we are. And in my piece "A Real Man... A Great Man... and the Man Cave" I talked about how we all need to feel as if we are accepted for who we are right here, right now, exactly the way we are without having to do more or be more. (Though it was slanted for men, the same applies for women as well)
At the time that I wrote each of those pieces I was feeling really good, but in the days and weeks in between I found that I'd lost all of those feel good moments and fell into a deep down cycle, and this one was BAD, the worst I'd had since I was 19 years old and lost 35 pounds in a matter of three weeks. I know Ed Burns makes fun of the down cycle in his flik "She's the One", one of my favorite movies (I'm a big Ed Burns fan), but they really do exist for all of us.
According to Dr. John Gray, men and women alike go through a cycle where they go from feeling really good about themselves to feeling really bad and need new affirmations that they matter to the world around them and are accepted and great just the way they are right now every 28 days or so. (Amazingly like the menstrual cycle) So not only does the down cycle exist, but its normal for every one of us to go through it. Its just that some of us feel it more than others depending on where we are in life, how we've been taught or are equiped to deal with things, and our brain chemistry.
So what the hell does this have to do with God? Well, as I said, I was caught up in the worst downcycle I can remember in the past 15 years, which is saying a lot considering some of the things that have happened in that time. And just when I thought I couldn't take it anymore, sure enough, one after another, I was put in position after position and given example after example to show me just how great I am right here, right now, just being who I am. And I was able to see, through the eyes of people around me, how much I do matter.
As always, I use experiences in my own life to try to get you thinking of similar experiences in yours. Isn't it amazing how something always seems to happen, as if it came out of nowhere, to bring us exactly what we need exactly when we need it? And it seems to happen every single time. We've all had this happen to us in our lives, the Rolling Stones wrote a song about it.
So last night as I drove home from dinner at a friends house, I couldn't help but reflect on all the of the things over the past couple of days that showed me just how much a part of other peoples lives that I am, and how much of a difference I really do make in those lives. Last night's dinner was one more way of showing it to me. And it all came just as I thought I had nothing left in the tank. It made me smile. And I couldn't help but blurt out as I got onto the highway....
God... you're a funny bastard God....
And here's another thing that proves the point of all I had to say today... my buddy who I had that dinner with last night... this guy is great and he doesn't even know it. He can't see it for himself. And I'd bet that I can say the exact same thing about YOU reading this right now. Its up to all of us to show each other how great we are, and how great we can be. Those of us that have people who do that in our lives don't need God, or the Tao, or the Force or the Universe, whatever you want to call it, to step in as much and do it for us. But it will if we need it to. It just waits till the last minute when we need it most. Its our job to make sure we get to people before they need it that much.
You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometimes you just might find... you get what you need.
And for those of you keeping score... we all need to feel like we're accepted for who we are right here, right now, and thats good enough without having to do or be more, and we need to express who that person in the right here right now is, and know that who we are and what we do matters to the people around us. But no matter who we are or where we are in life, every 28 days or so we're going to go from feeling great to feeling like crap, so it's important to surround yourself with people who accept you for who you are, allow you to express yourself, and show you how much you matter to them. Likewise, its just as important that you accept the people around you for who they are, allow them to express themselves, and show them that THEY matter to YOU..... its a running tally....
How much better would we all feel if we all did that? Life would be one giant lovefest... YEEAAAHHHH!!!!
Later People!
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Well, I have to say (or write) that you have wisdom advanced for your years. This is something us old-timers learn (from trial and error) over the years!
ReplyDeleteTo spell it out for people, that is terrific. You can say....OK...I get it!
As for talking to God...I always say....God, have a warped sense of humor sometimes!
I often think of Twilight Zone where these people are in a boxed in room and they can't get out...trying to scale the walls...the ending shows a child...reaching over and grabbing one of the people....